Bug 124992 - Unsplit help packages for Windows: provide a single package for all languages, like main installer
Summary: Unsplit help packages for Windows: provide a single package for all languages...
Status: NEW
Alias: None
Product: LibreOffice
Classification: Unclassified
Component: Documentation (show other bugs)
Version:
(earliest affected)
unspecified
Hardware: All Windows (All)
: medium enhancement
Assignee: Not Assigned
URL:
Whiteboard:
Keywords:
Depends on:
Blocks: Installer-Windows
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Reported: 2019-04-26 21:12 UTC by Mike Kaganski
Modified: 2023-10-22 10:50 UTC (History)
3 users (show)

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Description Mike Kaganski 2019-04-26 21:12:55 UTC
Currently we provide separate MSI help packages - one for each locale. This often creates confusion to people who fail to make sure that help package they installed strictly matches their LO UI language.

Total size of all help packages e.g. in http://downloadarchive.documentfoundation.org/libreoffice/old/6.2.3.2/win/x86_64/ is about 150 MB. Given that main LO installer there is 282 MB, it seems reasonable to expect those who need help packages to afford downloading extra 150 MB (in reality, there would be less, because of deduplication of installation machinery overhead). That would put all documentation for all languages available for LO, and so it would be able to pick needed help without disturbing users.

https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/191056/libraoffice-help/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/172790/help-pack-install-problems/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/148310/help-file-installed-but-not-recognised/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/77601/help-no-longer-works-on-just-installed-lo-5212-on-win10-build-1067-tried-us/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/77061/how-do-i-access-lo-help/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/75799/offline-help-51/
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/question/74443/the-built-in-help-in-libreoffice-doesnt-open-after-f1help-command-but-the-browser-has-started/

etc.
Comment 1 Xisco Faulí 2019-12-10 15:43:16 UTC
As an enhancement, it makes sense. Moving to NEW
Comment 2 Julien Nabet 2020-08-06 19:01:53 UTC
I don't understand the reasoning here. LO is only 282MB, so 150MB for the whole/all languages helpcontent corresponds to 50% of LO size, it's not nothing.

I think if you download Spanish localization of LO for example, it should just propose by default Spanish help. If you want Italian help, you should just use the LO setup to check the Italian helpcontent checkbox so it would indicate to LO to download the package and install it. (I don't know if this mechanism exist but it would be useful).

I'd like to avoid LO becoming a bloatware, I mean we could also just propose one package per env (Windows, Linux, MacOs, Android, etc.)/ version instead of one package per env/version/language and would have even bigger packages.
Comment 3 Jérôme 2023-10-22 10:49:29 UTC
A compromise would be :
- an MSI archive without any language-related files,
- one MSI archive per language (translated user interface, dictionary, offline translated help).

This last solution solves several problems:
- reduced download size,
- better user understanding of language-related topics.

In addition, the language settings of LibreOffice could provide an Internet link to download additional language packs (always installed for all computer users).

Each language MSI archive could provide the below options (all by default) :
- translated UI,
- dictionary,
- offline help.